J.P Morgan is maintaining its Neutral rating on Dunn & Bradstreet Corp. DNB. Revenues were in-line while profits were light. EPS was $1.74 v. JPM's $1.88 estimate. There were signs of top-line improvement, and D&B expects results to build into 2011. That being said, a big pivot isn't likely near-term—as the later cycle nature/demand for D&B's products is exacerbated somewhat by phasing of subscriptions.
J.P Morgan is a bit alarmed to hear the Tech investment won't be completed until H2,12 with costs now targeted at the high-end of the prior $110-130MM target. Valuation is intriguing at ~13.0 times 2012E EPS. But it is waiting for signs of sustained recovery at the Risk unit and progress in the Tech project. J.P Morgan's price target on DNB remains at $78 with a Neutral rating.
Tech project is progressing, but D&B now expects completion in H2,12. The delay is attributed to D&B's plan to rebuild part of its data supply chain in-house. Tech project costs could run $55-65MM in 2011 and $10-20MM in 2012. 2010 milestones included completion of the data center migration, a new application development center, launch of several new products, and a big lift in # of records/scores in its database.
DNB closed Thursday at $85.53
Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Comments
Loading...
date | ticker | name | Price Target | Upside/Downside | Recommendation | Firm |
---|
Benzinga simplifies the market for smarter investing
Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.
Join Now: Free!
Already a member?Sign in